Invictus (2009)

This was an interesting film.
Nelson Mandela (Morgan Freeman) has just been elected President of South Africa, the apartheid is finally over but problems still exist. When he moves into his new office, all the white employees have already packed their bags so he calls everyone together and assures them that no one will be fired unless they cannot perform the job properly. Mandela even hires white bodyguards in addition to the black ones he already had, which infuriates his lead bodyguard Jason (Tony Kgoroge). But forgiveness heals the soul.
Even the national Rugby team, the Springboks, is hated because it represents time before the equal rights movement. And the team isn't that great, so they have only a slim chance of winning their first game in the Rugby World Cup, held the next year.
Mandela decides to unite the country by using Rugby. He invites the captain of the team, Francois Pienaar (Matt Damon) for tea. Francois's parents aren't fans of Mandela's though his maid wants him to express her concerns for the long and expensive bus routes.
Fortunately, the meeting goes well and Mandela uses the team to hold clinics around the country, teaching the children about the team and getting the whole country behind them. This does go well, though when the team arrives at the poor villages, the children flock around Chester (McNiel Hendricks), who is the only black African on the team.
But as the country's support grows, so does the team's talent. They enter the World Cup and surprisingly, they make it to the finals. Mandela is one of their firmest supporters, memorizing the names of everyone on the team and wishing them all the luck in the world.
Though the Springboks fortunately win a close match versus the New Zealand All Blacks, who are a force to be reckoned with, Mandela is truly pleased that he was able to unite a divided country through them. His sacrifices were worth it.
Mandela is truly a person to be admired. His attitude is commendable. Freeman does a great portrayal, though his accent isn't spectacular. Damon's isn't great either though at least it is consistent throughout the film. They both received Oscar nominations for this film, Freeman's was deserved though Damon's truly wasn't. Oh well.
I did like the film as you don't really need to know much about the history of South Africa or even about Rugby to fully understand and appreciate this film which is always a relief. The film also goes quickly, though it clocks in at over two hours. Unfortunately, it isn't that memorable despite being a good, solid film with no true flaws. The story flows quite well, the setting and mechanics of the film are quite good but there were no moments that just grabbed me. Grade: B+